Learn to Focus (Vincent)

[Aiden Harris]

Why did Aiden do this to himself? He'd been told to show up for power training and he had. But showing up early was his own fault. He was still getting used to his new inability to sit still for any length of time. And now, he was stuck fidgeting waiting for the lesson to start. Damn his desire to be prompt! Why couldn't a desire to slack off have accompanied his other side effects?

He sighed as he sat on the ground, his body fidgeting involuntarily. At most, he should've aimed to be on time exactly. Then he wouldn't be sitting like this. ... And as he looked around, he realized that 'like this' meant with one leg behind his head. A frown formed on his face as he tried to untwist himself. The dull pain in his back made the process less than enjoyable. The last thing he needed was for his instructor to see him like this.

[Vincent Meian]

If he were any other person, Vincent would have been on time (and even a little early) to his training session with his most recent addition to his roster. However, being who he was made the tall man hurry to the training field as quickly as he could without running cursing the fact that he would only arrive with five minutes to spare. Fortunately, his path from his last session (which had run long) to his next one was unobstructed, and the man in black crossed through the field in enough time to catch his student... sitting interestingly.

"I would have suggested waiting until a later date for yoga and meditation," he stated, lifting an eyebrow in a show of amusement. He had come up off of Aiden's left side, and though he was a good ten feet from the boy the look up would not be particularly comfortable. "Do you require assistance?"

[Aiden Harris]

It was hard enough for Aiden to untie himself when he wasn't aching. But the pain in his back was making it an extra challenge. He grunted slightly, trying his best to fight against the pain. This would be a horrible first impression if his trainer walked up right now. He had to untangle himself... Or, judging from the voice that spoke, he could be horribly embarrassed.

"I... um..." he stammered, trying to angle his body enough to look up at the man who'd spoken. It was not an easy angle to achieve, and it certainly didn't help as the pain in his back became a small spasm. His mind raced as he tried to think of something to say. "Um... Do meta prostitutes get paid more or less?"

His eyes grew wide as the realization of what he'd just said sunk in. "No! I mean... My back hurt and I started thinking about massages and how I'd have to get one from someone super strong and then I thought about happy endings and then about prostitutes. Not that I think about prostitutes or anything! Like, not except now!" As he rambled, trying to explain the outburst, he continued to twist himself around.

Eventually, he ended up balanced on his hands as he banged his stuck foot against the ground. Eventually, the motion dislodged the twisted leg, allowing him to straighten out and rub his aching muscles. A pained, forced smile spread slowly across his face as he looked at the instructor. This was a horrible first impression. "... Hi. I'm Aiden." he squeaked, face burning red.

[Vincent Meian]

Normally, Vincent Meian was a difficult man to startle or even really surprise. This is partially because he'd been teaching for a fair while and partially because his best friend was... who he was. He had also bee in the military, when tended to make people aware of their surroundings and able to pick out those who would cause trouble. However, when those words dropped from Aiden's lips, the trainer's eyes widened slightly and a look of mild confusion crossed his features. He... wasn't quite sure how to respond to that.

Especially because he didn't know the answer.

Then, the boy started firing off his logic rapid-fire, his words blending together a bit as the Japanese man's brain tried to track it all. He didn't quite catch everything, but there was something about his back hurting and a massage and a connection somewhere to Korean massage parlors... he thought. It was all kind of confusing, but in a way very humorous. Especially since he hadn't answered Vincent's question and was still trying to get himself untangled.

Finally, the American seemed to straighten himself out and introduced himself, thoroughly embarrassed. By now, the trainer had already seen that the boy's file was fairly accurate; he was a bundle of nerves and energy, and his brain tended to wander off on its own accord. So, nonplussed, Vincent held out a hand to bring the boy to his feet. "Good afternoon," he replied, a very slight smirk expressing his amusement better than a laugh could have. "I am Vincent Meian - I will be your trainer for the remainder of your schooling."

[Aiden Harris]

Aiden was fairly certain his cheeks were going to literally catch fire. In fact, he wouldn't have been surprised if a group of campers wandered over and attempted to make smores using the heat from his face. He was also fairly certain that back home, his sister was laughing at him. Of course, the last one was generally a given, since she tended to laugh at him on a regular basis.

He took hold of Vincent's hand, trying very hard to very hard to focus on the ground as he stood up. His head was kept down as he took a step back. Curse his freaking metagene. While it was great being able to jump around like an acrobat on roids was pretty awesome, the lack of focus and the tendency to speak his random thoughts was a major downside.

Hopefully, trainers like Vincent would be able to help him. Otherwise, the rest of his life was going to be a distracted mess. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Meian." he said softly, still looking down. "Um... I'm ready. I think..."

[Vincent Meian]

Pulling the boy to his feet, the trainer released him as soon as the boy began to step back. Keeping hold when Aiden was obviously embarrassed would have only made things more awkward, and Vincent wasn't really one for handshakes anyway - still getting used to that cultural difference.

Fortunately, even if the blonde had a runaway train of thought, he also had manners and a certain degree of respect.

"Good," he replied, nodding as he crossed his arms over his chest. It was cold out, so the trainer wore his military jacket, but he had worn the thinner of the two he owned for comfort - high exercise in winter wear was unpleasant. The sleeves of the olive green jacket had been rolled up, exposing scarred and tattooed flesh to the February air. "We may start then. Do you have any experience in martial arts?"

Based on what he had read, Vincent didn't believe so; the boy was a good athlete and excelled in his gym classes, but there was a big difference between that and being trained in a certified self-defense program. Something with that much focus and discipline would (he hoped) help with the side-effects of ADD. If not, it at least would test this super durability of his to the limit.

[Aiden Harris]

As the initial embarrassment began to wane, Aiden found himself fidgeting again. The combination of nerves and short attention span was not working in his favor at the moment. For a second he wondered if it was possible for him to run away, find a hole to climb into, and hide there until he could control himself. Then, for just as long, he stopped thinking and simply tracked a random squirrel that was making its way across the training field.

It took him a good few seconds to realize that Vincent had asked a question. He couldn't fight the slight chortle that escaped his lips. "Me? Martial arts? Pft. Only if you count fighting with my sister." He stopped, a sudden happy thought causing him to bounce on the balls of his feet. "Oh my god... I'm durable and agile now! She can't hit me with chalkboards anymore! And even if she does, it won't hurt!"

Another thought hit him suddenly, putting an end to his elation. His brow furrowed as he looked over the man before him. Aiden may have reached a level of ADD usually reserved for hyper puppies, but he wasn't an idiot. The rolled up sleeves, the training, the question about martial arts. A slight wince crossed his face as the next question formed in his mind. "Is... is this gonna hurt?"

[Vincent Meian]

The rapid changes in thought pattern and emotion threw the trainer a bit before he managed to track where it was going. He managed a slight sigh and a shake of his head before he caught the boy stilling and looking over his bared forearms with a wince. The question, while expected, still amused the Japanese man into giving his student a slight smirk.

"I will not be deliberately harming you," he answered. "However, combat training does require sparring occasionally to ensure that the skills taught are adequate for a life-like scenario." Vincent caught the boy's attention wandering again and uncrossed his arms, deliberately making a motion of tugging the rolled-up sleeves into a neater configuration. "I will teach you a combination of techniques that will help you maintain control, apply focus, and use your agility to its fullest potential. If at any time this becomes too strenuous for you, we will cease and begin again in the next session. Do you understand?"

Subtly, the Japanese man had shifted his stance so that one foot was closer to his pupil than the other, and his shoulders angled slightly away. To anyone without martial arts training, it would seem like he was just shifting his feet for a more comfortable position. To someone who had combat training, he was readying himself for a sparring match.

Fortunately for Aiden, everything learned today would be non-contact. Then again, the boy really didn't have to know that.